In 1986, Lou Holtz was tapped as Head Coach of the then-struggling Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team. By the time he left the university 11 seasons later, he’d racked up 9 Bowl appearances, 5 Bowl victories, and one National Championship! He later revealed a vital question that he demanded players repeatedly ask themselves. It goes by the acronym W.I.N. – What’s Important Now?
In 1997 the internet was still in its infancy, and we didn’t even have iPhones. “Titanic” became the biggest movie of all time that year, George Clooney was People Magazine’s Sexiest Man Alive, and “Seinfeld” aired its final season. 1997 was also the year I began my career in financial services. What have I learned about market downturns in 25 years?
Like Yankee Hall-of-Famer Yogi Berra once said, “It’s déjà vu all over again.” Inflation, interest rates, consumer sentiment, and the invasion of Ukraine continue to impact markets and the economy.
“There are decades when nothing happens; and there are weeks when decades happen.” I think that’s an apt description of current events. With all that’s going on in geopolitics and markets so far this year, it can be a challenge to sift through the mountain of information out there. I wanted to share a few pieces we’ve been reading (and listening to) this week to lend the right perspective.
As you most likely noticed, the market has experienced increased volatility since the beginning of the year. As we discussed in our Econ Outlook Webinar in January, this was not unexpected. There are several factors contributing to the increased volatility - and the Russian invasion of Ukraine is now another unfortunate factor. With it all, the market is digesting quite a bit of information.
We just completed our 14th Annual Economic Outlook event. Our guest for a second year in row was Chris Shuba, CEO of Helios Quantitative Research. I’ve already received very kind reviews from those attending the live webinar. Included in the post is our Asset Class Returns Quilt for 2022, as well as a link to view a recording of the webinar.